TRENTON —Trenton Thunder’s future bat dog has officially been named after about three weeks of fetching suggestions from fans and supporters, officials announced today.

The 6-week-old golden retriever puppy, the son of team bat dog, Derby, and grandson of original bat dog, Chase, will be called Rookie, team spokesman Bill Cook said.

Trenton Thunder puppy - first vet visit 1/28/2014The soon to be named son of "Home Run Derby," the Trenton Thunder bat dog at his first visit to the Newtown Veterinary Hospital in Newtown, Pa. on Tuesday, January 28, 2014 The puppy who born on Dec. 15 will join Derby as the team's bat dog after he goes through a year and a half of training. (Martin Griff/ The Times of Trenton)

“As a minor league team, there’s a lot of young ballplayers here, so the name ‘Rookie’ fits with the minor league atmosphere at the ball park,” Cook said.

More than 1,000 names were submitted via the team’s website, social media and other outlets, Cook said.

A total of 2,000 votes were cast for the top eight finalist names: (Inside the) Parker, Slugger, Slider, Scooter, Thor, Ace and Mo, he said.

Rookie will appear at Thunder games during the 2014 season beginning April 3 at home as the team faces off against New Hampshire Fisher Cats. He will be trained by Shelly's School for Dogs in Millstone Township, and Cook said the team’s goal is to have Rookie make his bat dog debut for Thunder fans during the 2015 season.

Rookie was born on Dec. 15 at Goldilocks Goldens of Levittown, Pa. Derby's mate, Reba, had a litter of two puppies, a boy and girl. Rookie and his sister received a good bill of health Tuesday in the newly unveiled Trenton Thunder Room at the Newtown Veterinary Hospital as they received their first vaccinations.
Contact Nicole Mulvaney at nmulvaney@njtimes.com.